All Things Come To Those Who Wait
by Asemini
Summary: B/A Fluff, set after the end of series 8.     No longer on the job trying to maintain their worn friendship the duo take a camping trip to the woods where some long hidden truth's are revealed.    Rated M for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

He was frustrated. Which wouldn't bode well for anyone at the moment.

"_Alex, just … just don't." _

He'd said, he couldn't even find the words that told her exactly how much she'd meant, what the last eight years had meant, what she'd given up, and for him. It was all for him. Yet, here he was still in his apartment sitting at his kitchen table eating two day old takeaway and drinking cold coffee. The truth was, it had been warm when he started holding it in his hand, in fact when he started holding it in his hand, it had been too hot. Oh, the irony. He let out a soft sigh. That was it, this was it, it was over, he was no longer a cop, no longer had he the safety of a badge, the knowledge that Eames had his back. There was no Eames anymore, just Alex. Alex was a friend, and he had to earn the right to remain in the relationship now, his smarts wouldn't serve him superior anymore, now she had to judge him on personality. He sighed again. That was the problem, he'd been a cop so long, worked so many hours, he wasn't sure he had a personality that was, well, him anymore. He took the tin foiled food containers to the bin, stood and our the spent food into the garbage bag and watched as the last drips of sweet and sour finally left the facility of anything he could pick at. He just wanted to go back, not to the beginning, where she questioned his every move, even if half of that was in her head, and not towards the end where she'd realised what she'd missed out on, or he'd screwed her up on an emotional level. No, he wanted to go back to before Frank, before hi mother had got drastically ill, before things really started to go downhill. He was thinking to much, it was the trouble he had when he was alone, he was constantly thinking, constantly judging, criticising himself.

The knock at the door broke his concentration. So much so the coffee mug now replaced in his palm tilted spilling the spent energy boost down his shirt and jeans.

"Ahhh crap." he groaned. After a few seconds of successfully ingraining the caffine for life into the fibres of the clothes he made his way to the door, opening it while still trying to dry his crotch his bent form looked up.

"Ea-Alex" he corrected. Half a smile making it's way across his face he added "I was just thinking about you" Eames raised an eyebrow, in the manor that he'd long grown used to as an 'oh, really?' expression. He let out a soft chuckle as his brain pieced together what It was she might be imagining right about now, and pushed the door aside further to allow her access to his home.

"What are you-"

"I just came to-"

They both laughed as their voices intermingled into each other at the same time. Bobby held a hand forward,

"You first" he said politely. Eames smiled softly,

"I just came over to see how you were" Bobby decided he was just about done with the unsuccessful attempt at drying himself off.

"Bored out. Of. My. Mind." he informed her, she laughed making her way into his kitchen and pulling out a chair.

"Yeah, me to." And then it went quiet, the type of quiet that was unnervingly real, and drastically unneeded.

"So…" he started, and she looked across at him from his kitchen table and laughed.

"We've been working together for eight year Bobby, I think you should be past the shy and awkward phase with me." He laughed, running a hand behind his neck he unthinkingly blurted out his true response.

"You're the longest relationship I've had then." Eames' laughed suddenly stopped; and out of interest to the quiet again his ears seemed to make his gaze round to her, where he let out a sheepishly embarrassed smile before he pulled out the chair closet to him and sat down.

"I wouldn't know, but you can't be that bad with the opposite sex. Your always going on about your ex's." He let out a scoff.

"Hardly always." he protested

"Ok, well maybe twice, but you know." He laughed softly, something that rung in her ears as 'old Bobby' and warmed her heart.

"You've gone on about your dates more than I have, and pregnant too!" he waved a finger to her tutting out a no-no action and she batted it down with a flick of the wrist and laugh.

"Ok ok detective I already corrected myself." They suddenly fell quiet to the realisation of the wrong use of title and between them they managed a hefty sigh.

"Yeah-" he cleared his throat "-well…" His hand found itself gripping away the guilty coffee mug and his head raised as Eames' hand wrapped itself over his large digits.

"So what do you plan on doing now?" she said softly. In the three weeks that they'd both technically been 'unemployed' this question had never been brought up. In truth, she thought he blamed her for his loss of job, in truth he blamed no-one but himself, and that includes the reason she was now left jobless. In his mind if not for him, she'd be captain of major case, with more reasonable job hours for a deserving personal life and a pay rise. She sighed softly. Before he interrupted quickly.

"I've always liked Egypt." She laughed full out amused at this,

"You? Egypt, hardly."

"Oh come on Eames, it has pyramids, ancient history buried in its sand, and I hear the best pickpockets in the world." he looked up at her catching her gaze briefly and laughed.

"Oh yeah, from the man who was 'dying' when the air con went out in spring. I can totally see you bare footing it Egypt with your flabby tummy in the scorching heat."

"I don't think your allowed to walk barefoot." it took a moment for his brain to register her insult, and this showed in the fact that a few long seconds after his reply he finally went.

"Hey! I'll have you know its cushiony teddy goodness." They laughed in unison and she finally moved her hand but only to take the cup from him, taking a sip she immediately regretted her actions and cringed pulling a face.

"God Bobby, what's that 3 weeks old?" her tongue darted in and out to get rid of the taste. "It's vile and disgusting, and-"

"-and thirty dollars a pack of the finest Turkish grind" he corrected. She arched her eyebrow again and simply stated putting the cup on the table.

"I think your being ripped off." she pushed the cup towards him to avoid any future temptations to try and see if it had improved and leaned back folding her arms.

"I was thinking of going camping or something-" she paused for a moment "something _out of_ the city." Bobby laughed softly, and at her raised eyebrow he simply added.

"Oh nothing, it's just … very you." She smiled,

"You could always come with me, I'd only take my sister, and since she's had Max…. lets just say, not a lot of love for the outdoors with a six year old complaining about having to _go_ outdoors." Bobby raised his eyebrows.

"Your asking me to go camping … with you, in autumn?" he replied just confirming that he'd grabbed the right end of the stick.

"Well maybe, I'm not sure if _I'm going yet." She said getting up and flicking on the kettle. He'd always imposed on her that she was not a guest in his house, and should she want anything she should just take, or do it herself. She mostly ignored this, except for the making of coffee._

"_But if I do, your more than welcome to come and stretch your legs." She leaned forward over the table and grasped the cup not realising his hand had again taken place around its perimeter, she smiled sheepishly as he let go and merely turned her back as she made coffee. Who knows, perhaps being alone in a tent, in the middle of nowhere would do their friendship some good._


	2. Chapter 2

He couldn't believe he was doing this. Her joke, however harmless it may have been about him and Egypt had actually hit the mark, he wasn't very non city orientated, not anymore. Maybe when he as younger, doing all that travelling when he was in the army; But he hadn't been camping in a good twenty years. He wasn't even sure he was going to be any help pitching the tent for crying out loud! He groaned running his hand over his face completely regretting his decision to say yes to this 'half planned' camping trip with Alex. All his doubts were lost however, when he opened his front door to find Alex already decked out in khaki clothing her lengthened hair, which he would never actually say he preferred but did, tied back and a huge grin plastered on her face.

"Ready to go?" she said enthusiastically, her hand reaching toward the backpack he had waiting by the door he gave her a sceptical look.

"Your not backing out on me now are you Goren?" she asked her tone dropping towards a violent threatening level he smiled falsely.

"Of course not." he picked his coat off the stand behind the door and the keys off the side table, "shall we go?" he asked waiting politely for her to move out towards the car before locking the door.

"You do realise, this is the first 'friend' thing we've done-" Alex started leaning her hands against the driver's side window she all but peered over her rented SUV at him.

"In forever." he finished with a laugh, popping open his door he made an effort to ignore the cargo loads of stuff plastered on the back seat, he predicted; because the boot was already full; and placed his own bag in-between his legs as he buckled his seatbelt.

"So, where are we going?" he asked as Alex started off away from his comfort zone and headed towards the intersection.

"Oh, I couldn't tell you that Goren, it'd spoil the surprise."

Great. Now he'd be sat with a dread filled stomach about what sort of 'natural' things would impose themselves on his 'modern man' physic while Eames quite happily churned away at the driver's seat just as, it … well just had it had always been. Only this time at least, there was absolutely no threat of a dead body at the end of the journey. His lips turned upwards to this slight titbit his brain had provided. Well that would be nice, not having to look in her soulful eyes over a decaying corpse, his head turned back as his eyes locked onto a sign.

"We're going to cranberry lake aren't we." He let out a short ha! Of accomplishment as Alex smirked.

"I knew it."

"I spent my summer's here, I know the area." She turned her head smiling,

"Besides, you'll love the views."

"Just not the animals." She laughed at him pulling into the fast lane and pumping the gas.

"Oh Bobby, your much more a threat to them." He raised his eyebrows but none the less slunk down in his seat.

"Yeah well… I don't have claws, or sharp teeth." Alex scoffed.

"Try telling that to the bacon sandwich I've seen you devour hungry. It's like a 6ft bear in candy land on steroids." Even he had to let out a little chuckle at the mental image the visual language produced at that.

"You could have at least… eased me into something _this_ big." Alex smirked and quipped out after him, rather enjoying the small blush her retort gained her.

"Is that what she said?" He groaned, fully realising he'd walked both feet and arms into that and shifted further down into his seat.

"Besides, you were in the army, I'd have thought you'd enjoy just been thrown in at the deep end." Alex watched as the scenery barely changed now and realised they were now onto the main stretch of the journey she slumped into a less attentive drivers position.

"Or you'd think I'd have had enough of that."

"Oh please! You ALWAYS provoke danger when you don't need to." He smiled proudly.

"Yeah, I guess I do." He paused, resting his head on his index finger against the window. "How long does it take to get there then?"

"What are you, twelve?" Eames joked.

"I'm a very big twelve year old if I am" he laughed.

_They had been driving for a fair few hours now. Even stopped of for something to eat at a small gas station. Alex had jokingly got him a Bacon sandwich just to poke even more fun at his hunger. He however had got his own back on her by claiming that she had taken the keys into the shop to pay, and in truth he'd taken them out of the ignition and watched as the horror crept on her face at the realisation she'd lost them; it was a very muddy gas station. He'd simply leaned against the driver's door and dangled them in his palm, nodding his head towards the car he'd claimed that he was driving the rest of the journey. _

_Which hadn't been all that far, they simply drove another 45 minutes before Alex had demanded that he take the next turning and then the realisation at why she hired a car had hit him._

_The ground was a lot less smooth, he could feel every branch, every rock the thick wheels encountered and his stomach bouncing in his chest was grateful for the majority of the food being digested now. Alex guided him through tree's until they reached a small clearing. It was clear she'd been here before, he watched as her face lit up with recognition, as the happy memories danced over her eyes her mouth drew up into a smile and she simply stared wistfully out the window before telling him to stop._

"We can set up camp here for tonight, and then go higher up tomorrow." she said opening the door. Manoeuvring her body over his bag as she'd done to get in, she got out the car and opened the boot.

"Aren't I a clever girl? I brought food that doesn't need preparing." she said with a smile, laughing as Bobby's face lit up in delight again at the mention of food.

"Oh please, please tell me its chips, please, please pleeeeeasse" he said childishly, hurriedly making his way round to the back of the car again he produced a victory movement of both arms flailing as she held up a bag of Doritos.

"Yeees!" he exclaimed all but snatching the bag out of her hand she laughed as he proceeded to do a little dance of satisfaction.

"I might love you Alexandra Eames." he said with a grin as he used his free hand to pull out what he new to be one tent.

It probably would have been better if he'd have put the chips down. Maybe if he had put the chips down he wouldn't have just pulled with force, maybe if he had put them down he wouldn't have just caught the harsh fabric on a small yet incredibly sharp it would seem bit of debris in the boot.

"Shit." he cursed as his eyes recognised with his brain far to late that a whole had been produced.

"Shit Eames I'm sorry." He popped the closed bag of chips in between his teeth and leaned forward to remove the tent with both hands. It was to late; the damage was clearly already done. He could fit very easily two fingers into the whole, and doing so only stretched it further. Sometimes, for being so clever, he was very stupid. Alex pulled the damage towards her, inspecting with gentler fingers the damage she looked up at him.

"Damn Bobby, now where are you going to sleep?" She let out a soft laugh and then pointed towards the spare tent now perched up in all it's packaging against the side of the car.

"You ripped the smaller on anyway" she smiled and suddenly the lurching in his stomach was set to ease, almost like a child who had just been told they weren't actually in trouble and had done something right.


End file.
